What Sharks Eat Shellfish?

Each species of shark has a unique diet, feeding on different things depending on its habitat. Some sharks, like great whites and tiger sharks, sometimes feed on mammals such as seals and small dolphins. Other sharks, mostly bottom feeders, feed on smaller fish and shellfish.

  1. Pacific Angel Shark

    • These sharks, which resemble rays because of their extended and triangular fins on either side of their body, are bottom-dwelling sharks that hide themselves under the sand on the bottom of the ocean, where they wait for prey such as crabs and shrimp.

    Nurse Shark

    • The nurse shark is another bottom-dwelling species of shark that lives on the ocean floor. Nurse sharks hunt mostly at night. The placement of the mouth at the front of the head allows them to easily grab crustaceans such as crabs, lobsters and shrimp from nearby reefs.

    California Hornshark

    • The California hornshark is a smaller species of bottom-dwelling shark. Although it sometimes is prey to larger, more predatory species of bottom-dwellers such as the Pacific angel shark, this shark is also known to feed on shellfish such as crabs, lobsters and shrimp.

    White Tip Reefshark

    • The white tip reefshark, although a bottom-dwelling species, likes to hunt above the reefs. It typically has a more varied diet than other bottom-dwelling sharks, feeding on small fish and squid, in addition to its diet of shellfish such as crabs, lobsters and shrimp. The smaller, streamlined body of the white tip reefshark also allows it to fit in spaces within reefs in which other sharks are not able.